Taco, Milk, Mart

What I Miss
I recently took a brief trip back to the U.S (This might explain my inactivity on the blog). I have noticed a trend when ex-pats travel back from their homelands... When they get back to Hyderabad there is a kind of depression that settles on them. I've noticed this for some time now and always thought it was part of the jet lag process. Now I think this is not true... I think the moodiness is a sort of mourning process that we go through. Not for people, but for the things we cannot get in Hyderabad that we can get in our homelands and other places. There are a lot more things available here all the time, but there are some things you just can't get. An example would be Starbucks coffee. Yes they have coffee places here, but they sell powdered, over sugared, over flavored coffee drinks in thimble sized cups and usually do not have ice for blended drinks (best to stay away from the ice anyway). If you ask for plain, or black coffee they look at you like your speaking a dead language and tell you that it isn't possible as they do not have a button on the cash register for plain coffee.
My husband and I made a little game called, "If you could bring anything back with you what 3 things would it be?"My answers were:
Target/Wal-Mart
Taco Bell
Milk


I thought it would be interesting to put this on the blog to see if anyone reading the blog would like to play? What 3 things do you miss the most about your homeland? Or what would you miss if you left your hometown?

Friends

One thing that makes living away from your homeland more tolerable is friends.
Every Friday night the local expat club has a gathering at a local private club. Here are some pictures from last night.
Here are some of our German friends.
Here is my oldest and dearest Hyderabad friend, Padmaja. We've also been called the "two headed monster" (an inspiration for our Halloween costume). We're holding OM beads. Do we seem more at peace?
Here are the four nicest expats living in Hyderabad. Tanvi, Indu, Krishnon and Mary.
Here are Seema, Cheryl and Rob.

Coolest laptop ever in the history of laptops

I've been having problems with my laptop for almost a year now. It doesn't seem to hold a charge, and turns itself off periodically. There is no 'Geek Squad' in India, so I asked the guy who works for the internet service to help me. The standard answer I got, "You have a virus you should run an anti virus program"... That will be 300 rupees.
I'm no expert, but I don't think I have a virus, I think I have a battery problem, or an electrical problem.
The other day Scott pulled my laptop off the shelf (where it has been collecting dust) to get some of the i-tunes he has stored on it. He plugged it in and promptly shocked himself. Not bzzzt ouch, but bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt vibrate, clench teeth, drop laptop, expletive. I don't think that is a virus issue.
Anyway, Scott is alive and his hair seems so much fuller than before the laptop shock.
For my birthday, I am taking a short trip to the U.S. I am hoping while I am there I will have time to purchase a new laptop. I did a little research and I found my dream computer. I don't know anything about how much memory it has or how fast it is. It doesn't seem ultra small or light. What it is... it's the coolest laptop ever in the history of laptops. And here is a picture.

Here is the site I found it on.

http://www.datamancer.net/steampunklaptop/steampunklaptop.htm

Stop Horn Please

I have trouble adjusting to how loud it can get in India. The first rule for driving in America is to fasten your seat belt, where the first rule in India is to locate the horn. I'm not exaggerating to say everyone drives with one hand on the horn and one on the gear shift (not many automatic transmissions in India).

The rules of sounding your horn:
When you pass a vehicle, honk your horn.
When a vehicle passes you, honk your horn.
When someone is walking down the road, honk your horn.
When going through an intersection, honk your horn.
If there is an animal on the road (there almost always is), honk your horn.
When a song you like comes on the radio, honk your horn (just kidding, there is no radio).

This may seem completely ridiculous when written down, but it's a system that seems to work... a very loud system. However, you do tend to drown out the noise after a while. The other day I was stopped at the world's longest stop light (the Hi-Tech City crossroads), when a good friend of mine was crossing the street. He walked directly in front of my car; I rolled down the window and yelled his name. My voice was lost in the sounds of traffic, so I honked the horn... he kept walking, not realizing the honk was a friendly hello meant for him.

In case you forget to blow your horn most of the 'tuk tuks' and lorries have reminders to do so written on the backs of their vehicles. They also request you to stop short and not run into them. The painted script reads, "Horn Please", and "Stop". I like to read it as "Stop Horn Please".

As you drive along the busy, crowded streets of Hyderabad you will hear a symphony of different tones and sounds of every kind of horn imaginable. There is the beep beep of the numerous motorcycles, the squeeze honk of the auto rickshaws, the honk honk of the cars and SUV's and the blasts from the lorries and busses. Add the shrill constant tweet of the police whistle and the vroom, put put, rrrrrrrr, of the vehicle engines and your traffic orchestra is complete.

This constant noise pollution, while maddening, has become a comfort to the people who have grown up here. A prime example are the security guards who patrol the apartment complexes and gated communities. They are issued a whistle and bamboo stick as part of their uniform. They are expected to blow their whistles outside of our homes and whack the stick on the road throughout the night to prove that they are awake and on duty. (It's also supposed to scare off would-be burglars and wild dogs.) Could you imagine paying someone to make noise outside of your home all night long? I can identify with Alice's Wonderland experience.